Posted by Cat on December 05, 2013

'Tis the season to be fancypants. Our Top Pick in Cookbooks for December, Sweet by Valerie Gordon, is the ideal guide to the most gorgeous and delicious sweet treats of the season. Writes Cooking columnist Sybil Pratt, "Sophisticated, grown-up winners, all; you can’t go wrong."

Champagne Gelée

Serves 6

Gelée sounds so much more sophisticated and elegant than the word “gelatin.” We all grew up with the packaged variety in those electric colors with flavors like orange and lime. Dispel that notion of gelatin; this version is far more delicious and impressive. Use your favorite Champagne or sparkling wine.

1 tablespoon plus 3/4 teaspoon powdered gelatin

3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons (7.5 ounces) cold water

1 cup (7 ounces) sugar

1 bottle (750 ml) Champagne, chilled

1. Sprinkle the gelatin over the 3 tablespoons water in a small bowl, and let sit for 10 minutes, until the gelatin softens.

2. Combine the remaining 3/4 cup water and the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat.

3. Add the gelatin to the sugar syrup, stirring until it has dissolved. Pour into a large pitcher. Pour the Champagne into the pitcher and stir with a long spoon.

4. Pour the gelée into glasses or small glass bowls and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours, until set.

Storing

The gelée can be refrigerated, covered with plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.

Tip

Adding strawberries, sliced if large, and raspberries, is a delicious way to vary this recipe. Add the berries to the glasses before refrigerating the gelée. If you add berries, it is best to serve the gelées the day they are made, as the berries can darken and break down, and the effect will not be as pretty.

Posted by Hilli on November 26, 2013

Pamela Clare's Striking Distance is our Top Pick in Romance for November! The story involves a broadcast journalist, Laura, recovering in Denver after enduring 18 months as a terrorist hostage while on assignment in the Middle East, and Javier, one of the Navy Seals from the very team that rescued her. Our Romance columnist calls it "a steamy story filled with action, intriguing twists and an unexpected emotional wallop."

We caught up with Pamela Clare in a 7 questions interview and asked her what she loves about writing romance:

I really love the happy endings I get to create for my characters—something I wasn’t able to do as an investigative journalist. I can start with problems that exist in the real world, truly terrible situations, and I can make them better by the end, ensuring that the hero and heroine get their reward and giving the villain what he or she deserves.

Read the full interview to learn about where she writes, her trips to the shooting range and her favorite action hero hunks!

Posted by Cat on November 21, 2013

The season of gift books is upon us, and if you've got a foodie on your list, Cooking columnist Sybil Pratt recommends Daniel Boulud's Daniel: My French Cuisine above all other cookbooks this year. Now to find someone with enough culinary talents to take on recipes like this one . . .

Beer-Marinated Pork Rack with a Barley-Mustard Crust

Serves 6

Ingredients:

Barley-Mustard Crust (makes extra)

¼ cup pearl barley

1 cup Chicken Stock

Salt

½ cup (1 stick) butter

1 cup Fine White Breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons mustard seeds, soaked in water overnight

1 tablespoon mustard powder

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons grainy mustard

Freshly ground white pepper

Pork Rack

Salt

¾ tablespoon brown sugar

1½ tablespoons mustard seeds, soaked in water overnight

¾ tablespoon cracked black peppercorns

6 sprigs sage

8 sprigs thyme

4 bay leaves, torn

8 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

1 (6-rib) pork rack (about 8 pounds), Frenched and tied

1 (12-ounce) bottle amber ale (such as Fischer’s Bière D’Alsace)

Freshly ground white pepper

3 tablespoons canola oil

3 tablespoons butter

8 large green cabbage leaves, remaining head reserved for the baeckeoffe

1/4 cup grated fresh horseradish

Directions:

For the Barley-Mustard Crust

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Rinse the barley with cold water until it runs clear.

Place in a medium ovenproof saucepan with the stock and ½ teaspoon salt.

Bring to a simmer, cover, and bake for 35 minutes.

Remove, rest for 10 minutes, and fluff with a fork.

Transfer the barley to a tray, spread into a thin layer, and chill uncovered in the refrigerator.

In an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the butter until creamy.

Add the cooled barley, the breadcrumbs, mustard seeds, mustard powder, Dijon mustard, and grainy mustard and season with salt and pepper; mix just until combined.

Scrape the butter onto a sheet of parchment paper, set another paper on top, and roll into a 1/8-inch-thick sheet.

Refrigerate until firm, or for up to 3 days.

For the Pork Rack

In a large saucepan, simmer 2¼ cups water with 2¼ tablespoons salt and the brown sugar until dissolved.

Remove from the heat, add the mustard seeds, cracked peppercorns, and half of the sage, thyme, bay leaves, and garlic; allow to cool.

Place the pork in a 2-gallon resealable bag and pour in the water–spice mixture and the beer. Seal and marinate refrigerated for 48 hours, turning the pork 4 times.

Preheat the oven to 300°F.

Remove the pork from the marinade, scrape off any herbs or spices stuck to the meat, and pat dry.

Season on all sides with white pepper. If desired, wrap the bones with aluminum foil to prevent browning.

Heat the oil in a roasting pan over medium-high heat.

Add the pork and sear on all sides until golden brown, about 8 minutes total.

While searing, baste often with the oil from the pan, especially in the areas around the bones. Reduce the heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons of the butter and the remaining sage, thyme, bay leaf, and garlic.

Continue turning and basting for 3 minutes.

Transfer to the oven and roast until the internal temperature reaches 130°F, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and boil the cabbage leaves until tender, about 4 minutes.

Strain off the water and add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter.

Toss with the horseradish to heat through.

Season with salt and pepper.

Remove the pork and increase the oven temperature to broil.

Remove the barley crust from the refrigerator.
Press the crust onto the meaty side of the pork and trim any overhanging edges if needed.

Broil the pork for about 5 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.

Arrange the cabbage on a serving tray and set the roasted pork rack on top.

Posted by Cat on November 07, 2013

Best suited to armchair savoring, Daniel Boulud's Daniel: My French Cuisine is a gorgeous cookbook, our Top Pick in Cookbooks for November and one of the best gourmet gifts of the season. With recipes from Boulud’s famed New York restaurant, Danielwill inspire the most intrepid of cooks.

Posted by Cat on October 24, 2013

With delicious recipes like this one, London restaurateurs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi's cookbook Ottolenghi is likely to stir up a "rapturous feeding frenzy" similar to the one inspired by their award-winning, trend-setting cookbook Jerusalem. Ottolenghi is our Top Pick in Cookbooks for October!

To make the sauce, put all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and whisk well. Taste—looking for a vibrant, tart, citrusy flavor—and adjust the seasoning. Chill or leave out for up to an hour.

To prepare the cauliflower, trim off any leaves and use a small knife ?to divide the cauliflower into little florets. Add them to a large pan ?of boiling salted water and simmer for 15 minutes, until very soft. Drain into a colander.

While the cauliflower is cooking, put the flour, chopped parsley, garlic, shallots, eggs, spices, salt, and pepper in a bowl and whisk together well to make a batter. When the mixture is smooth and homogenous, add the warm cauliflower. Mix to break down the cauliflower into ?the batter.

Pour the sunflower oil into a wide pan to a depth of 2?3 inch / 1.5 cm and place over high heat. When it is very hot, carefully spoon in generous portions of the cauliflower mixture, 3 tablespoons per fritter. Take care with the hot oil! Space the fritters apart with a fish slicer, making sure they are not overcrowded. Fry in small batches, controlling the oil temperature so the fritters cook but don’t burn. ?They should take 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

Remove from the pan and drain well on a few layers of paper towels. Serve with the sauce on the side.

Posted by Hilli on October 15, 2013

Jhumpa Lahiri is back with her second novel, The Lowland. Her debut, The Namesake, earned her plenty of critical praise, and expectations for The Lowland have been quite high. Lahiri has more than met those with this "intricately plotted, melancholy family drama" that has since been shortlisted for the 2013 Man Booker Prize.

The novel follows two brothers, Subhash and Udayan Mitra, as they grow to lead two very different lives and encounter conflict that drives a wedge between them. A story spanning decades and two continents, The Lowland explores the power of family and memory with Lahiri's "elegant, gently understated prose."

Watch the trailer below and learn more about this Top Pick for October!

Posted by Hilli on October 08, 2013

Kate DiCamillo, author of Because of Winn-Dixie and The Tale of Despereaux, brings us a new comic book-inspired adventure with Flora & Ulysses.

Flora Belle Buckman is a very observant 10-year-old who is also a bit of a cynic, but her life is drastically changed when her neighbor accidentally sucks up a squirrel in her fancy new vacuum. After Flora gives the poor squirrel CPR, he somehow wakes up with superpowers—he’s strong, he can fly and he can even write poetry. Flora names him Ulysses, and they form a fast friendship while getting into all sorts of silly hijinks.

Flora & Ulysses is a heartfelt story for young readers that finds a perfect balance between fun and sophistication. K.G. Campbell’s black and white pencil illustrations are just a fantastic accompaniment, and the comic-book style action sequences couldn’t be a better fit. This story is sure to melt the heart of anyone's inner cynic.

Watch the fun trailer below:

Holy Bagumba, readers! Are you reading this highly anticipated Children's Top Pick yet? (If not, you can enter this week's book giveaway to win a copy!)

Posted by Cat on October 03, 2013

Ottolenghi is our Top Pick in Cookbooks for October! Cooking columnist Sybil Pratt promises that these sunny, bold Middle Eastern recipes, packed with Mediterranean and Californian influences, "will make even the most jaded cook jump for culinary joy."

Grease an 8-inch / 20-cm springform cake pan and line the bottom and sides with parchment paper. Place the raisins and water in a medium saucepan and simmer over low heat until all of the water has been absorbed. Leave to cool.

Preheat the oven to 325°F / 170°C. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, and baking soda and set aside.

Put the oil and superfine sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a whisk if you don’t have a mixer). Slit the vanilla bean lengthwise in half and, using a sharp knife, scrape the seeds out into the bowl. Beat the oil, sugar, and vanilla together, then gradually add the eggs. The mix should be smooth and thick at this stage. Mix in the diced apples, raisins, and lemon zest, then lightly fold in the sifted dry ingredients.

Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl, either by hand or with a mixer, until they have a soft meringue consistency. Fold them into the batter in 2 additions, trying to maintain as much air as possible.

Pour the batter into the lined pan, level it with an icing spatula, and place in the oven. Bake for 1½ hours, until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan.

Once the cake is completely cold, you can assemble it. Remove from the pan and use a large serrated knife to cut it in half horizontally. ?You should end up with 2 similar disks. If the cake is very domed, ?you might need to shave a bit off the top half to level it.

To make the icing, beat together the butter, muscovado sugar, and maple syrup until light and airy. You can do this by hand, or, preferably, in a mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the cream cheese and beat until the icing is totally smooth.

Using the icing spatula, spread a layer of icing 3/8 inch / 1 cm thick ?over the bottom half of the cake. Carefully place the top half on it. Spoon the rest of the icing on top and use the icing spatula to create a wavelike or any other pattern. Dust it with confectioners’ sugar, if you like.

Posted by Cat on August 29, 2013

Raghavan Iyer's new cookbook, Indian Cooking Unfolded, is our Top Pick in Cookbooks! Each of these 100 recipes uses 10 ingredients or fewer, all of which you can find at your everyday market. There's no better way to learn to cook Indian food at home!

An unsuspecting eater will take a look and say “oooh, crab cakes,” but looks are deceiving. These golden yellow patties dotted with fresh herbs are in fact made from potatoes and harbor assertive flavors that keep you begging for just one more bite. There is a reason they are perfect finger foods on the streets of India. These grab- and-go patties are pungent, minty, and crisp on the outside with a well-rounded finish that adroitly balances the heat from the chiles with the cool-down qualities of starchy potatoes and bread. They make an ideal accompaniment to the glasses of steaming, sweet chai sold in disposable clay cups on the streets of Mumbai and Delhi.

Makes 12 cakes; serves 6

1 pound russet or Yukon Gold potatoes

1?2 small red onion, coarsely chopped

1?4 cup firmly packed fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems

2 tablespoons firmly packed fresh mint leaves

4 to 6 fresh green serrano chiles, stems discarded

5 to 7 slices (each about 1?2 inch thick) good-quality white bread

11?2 teaspoons coarse kosher or sea salt

1?2 teaspoon ground turmeric

2 tablespoons canola oil, plus oil for panfrying

1. Peel the potatoes, cut them into large chunks, place them in a small saucepan, and add enough water to cover. Bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and let simmer, covered, until the potatoes are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. hile the potatoes are cooking, place the onion, cilantro, mint, and chiles in the bowl of a food processor. Using the pulsing action, mince the blend to create an earthy, pungent mix that has a strong minty aroma. Letting the processor run constantly instead of using quick pulses will break down the onion into a watery mess that will create excess liquid.

3. Once the potatoes are fall-apart ten- der, drain them in a colander and place them in a medium-size bowl. Mash them well. Wet the bread slices with warm tap water, then squeeze them tight to remove all excess water. Add the mass to the pota- toes. Scrape the minced onion–mint medley over this mélange and sprinkle the salt and turmeric on top. Using your hand, squeeze the mixture to break apart the damp bread into smaller pieces, making sure you incor- porate all of it into the potatoes to make a bumpy-feeling dough. It will be sun-yellow and speckled with green herbs.

4. Coat the dough with the 2 tablespoons of oil. Form the dough into a thick log. Cut it in half lengthwise and cut each half into 6 equal portions. Shape each portion into a ball about the size of a golf ball and press it gently between your palms to flatten it into a patty that is about 3 inches in diameter and 1?2 inch thick.

5. Line a plate or baking sheet with paper towels. Pour oil to a depth of 1?8 to 1?4 inch into a large skillet (preferably nonstick or cast iron). Heat the oil over medium heat until it appears to shimmer. Place 6 of the patties in the skillet and panfry until the bottoms are golden brown and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. (You are cooking only 6 because you don’t want to overcrowd the skillet and get greasy results.) Turn the patties over and cook them until the second side is nicely browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the patties to the paper towels to drain. Repeat with the remaining 6 patties.

6. Serve the potato cakes warm.

EXTRA CREDIT

To rewarm any leftover potato cakes, preheat the oven to 300°F and heat them uncovered on an ungreased baking sheet until they are warm all the way through, about 10 minutes. Or you may microwave them on high power for 1 to 2 minutes and stuff them into sliced pita bread nestled among shreds of romaine lettuce or spinach with a drizzle of a favorite yogurt sauce (I love the Yogurt with Grapes, page 108).

You can also turn any leftovers into vegetarian burgers by warming them in a nonstick skillet with a slice of your favorite cheese on top. Place a lid on the skillet to melt the cheese. Then put the burgers in toasted buns and top each with a slice of red onion and tomato. Don’t forget the fries. In my book, there is nothing wrong with potatoes, bread, and more potatoes for a carbohydrate overload. You will thank me for it.

Excerpted from Indian Cooking Unfolded. Copyright 2013 by Raghavan Iyer. Used by permission of Workman Publishing Co., Inc., New York. All Rights Reserved. Read our review of this book.

Posted by Cat on August 21, 2013

The People in the Treesby Hanya Yanagihara
Doubleday • $26.95 • ISBN 9780385536776
On sale August 13, 2013

Hanya Yanagihara's The People in the Trees is one of our August issue's best debut novels of the year, perfect for fans of Donna Tartt, Ann Patchett and Barbara Kingsolver. Our reviewer was practically beside herself with praise, saying, "Novels like these are reminders not only of why we read, but also of just how vital and downright magical storytelling can be."

But if I'm totally honest, I picked this one up because I wanted to read about people eating magical turtles.

And there are definitely people eating turtles here, but fortunately for me, all the other stuff is true, too. Norton Perina, a scientist who has recently fallen from grace, recounts in these fictional memoirs an extraordinary journey into a remote Micronesian island where the meat of a turtle called the opa'ivu'eke may hold the key to eternal youth—but it comes with a terrible price.

The vivid and grotesque descriptions of setting, the engrossing science and the incredible imagination of this story are all enough to earn this book a spot among the best debuts of the year. What makes it one of the best books of the year, period, is its maturity in characterization. To take a man who has lost everything, who has been cast out from society and who may incite disgust in the reader, and allow him to represent himself in his own words defines Yanagihara as a uniquely talented storyteller. It takes compassion to be without judgment.

Looking back on it now, of course, I realize how extraordinary those first few days were, before I became immune to the awes of the jungle and even grew to despise them. One day—it must have been our third or fourth—I was trudging uphill as usual, looking around me, listening to the conversations of birds and animals and insects, feeling the floor beneath me gently buckling and heaving with unseen layers of worms and beetles as I placed my feet upon them; it could feel like treading on the wet innards of a large dozing beast. And then there was for a moment Uva at my side—he normally walked far ahead of me, in a pack with Fa'a and Tu, darting forward and back to assure Tallent that all was safe—holding his hand out before him, signaling me to stop. Then, quickly and gracefully, he sprang toward a nearby tree, indistinguishable from all others, thick and dark and branchless, and scrabbled up it quickly, turning his wide feet inward to cup its thorny bark. When he was about ten feet or so up, he looked down at me and held out his hand again, palm down—wait. I nodded. And then he continued to climb, vanishing into the canopy of the forest.

When he came down, he was slower, and clutching something in his hand. He leapt down the last five feet or so and came over to me, uncurling his fingers. In his palm was something trembling and silky and the bright, delicious pale gold of apples; in the gloom of the jungle it looked like light itself. Uva nudged the thing with a finger and it turned over, and I could see it was a monkey of some sort, though no monkey I had ever seen before; it was only a few inches larger than one of the mice I had once been tasked with killing, and its face was a wrinkled black heart, its features pinched together but its eyes large and as blankly blue as a blind kitten's. It had tiny, perfectly formed hands, one of which was gripping its tail, which it had wrapped around itself and which was flamboyantly furred, its hair hanging like a fringe.

"Vuaka," said Uva, pointing at the creature.

"Vuaka," I repeated, and reached out to touch it. Under its fur I could feel its heart beating, so fast it was almost a purr.

"Vuaka," said Uva again, and then made as if to eat it, solemnly patting his stomach.

The People in the Trees is one of my favorite debuts of the year, but First Fiction Month has highlighted plenty of other great debuts!